Johnson University

For Smith and the other members of the college’s executive leadership team, “community” all comes down to an attitude of the heart. “You’re going to be among faculty and staff who care about you, who want your wellbeing,” he says. “We care about the kind of work you do. We believe we’re training students to be strong servant leaders in their community and their churches and schools. We stress a strong sense of purpose and a strong sense of community.” To that end, JUTN’s advancement offices developed the Uncommon Community campaign, an ambitious effort to shape the culture of both campuses by providing student-centered spaces About 60 percent of our endowment goes to student scholarships. That’s how we keep tuition as low as possible.” Nearly 30 percent of JUTN freshmen entering the 2020-21 academic year were first generation students. Students in this category often face obstacles their peers don’t experience. Smith acknowledges, “More than 70 percent of our students are eligible for Federal Pell grants, so the affordability issue is really critical. But it’s not just that we want to be affordable, we also want to make sure we’re offering a high-quality education and a high-quality community campus experience.”